Johannes Veerman charged from five strokes back to win the Nedbank Golf Challenge by one for his second-ever DP World Tour title as South Africa's Aldrich Potgieter suffered a disappointing late collapse.
American Veerman began the final round five shots adrift of his South African rival but slowly chipped away at those near the top via a superb final round of 69 (-3) on a particularly tough Gary Player Country Club course in Sun City.
Veerman carded six birdies and three bogeys to set the clubhouse lead on a measly five-under, around half an hour before Potgieter was due to finish.
Victory was almost within touching distance for the 20-year-old Potgieter, who at one point down the back nine possessed a three-stroke lead, but after a double on the front nine and a triple-bogey on the par-3 12th, his short game fell apart late on.
Having wrestled the lead back by one going down the 16th, Potgieter recorded two bogeys in the final three holes to miss out on a playoff.
Aldirch Potgieter missed this putt to force a play-off which meant Johannes Veerman claimed his second Tour title 🙌#NGC2024 pic.twitter.com/aHKEu8s6smDecember 8, 2024
Potgieter's misfortune was Veerman's delight, though, with an emotional 32-year-old saying: "Me and my caddie and my family, they sacrificed so much and they travelled with me on the road all year last year.
"To pick up, and leave your friends and your family behind, for them to support me, it takes a lot of sacrifice.
"I didn't have the best seasons the last two years. We put a lot of work in, me and my team - countless hours. To win this season, to start off this season with a win is indescribable."
It was a bumpy start for the 2021 Czech Masters winner, as Veerman alternated birdies with bogeys across consecutive holes between the second and sixth.
He birdied the ninth to make the turn in 34 before making further gains at 11 and 14, consequently increasing his momentum.
"My caddie and my family sacrifice so much to travel with me on the road. It's in indescribable."Hear from an emotional Johannes Veerman 🥹#NGC2024 pic.twitter.com/G7pKTdPVQwDecember 8, 2024
Yet, an untimely bogey on the par-3 16th halted that, with Veerman later admitting that he thought his outside chance of victory might have gone up in smoke at that exact moment.
Perhaps feeling like the pressure was off at that point, he navigated the treacherous final two holes in par and headed over to the range to stay loose in case of a slip-up from Potgieter.
As it turned out, the stumble arrived and Veerman was able to celebrate his second DP World Tour triumph in what was his Nedbank Golf Challenge debut.
He said: "I knew I had a chance [late on] but actually thought I might have lost it on the 16th when I three-putted and missed that putt. That one really hurt, but it turns out it doesn't even matter!"
Potgieter finished in a tie for second on four-under alongside Matthew Jordan and Romain Langasque, while Denmark's Thorbjorn Olesen completed the top five a shot further back.
A group of seven players tied for sixth on two-under for the tournament, with the likes of Corey Conners, Mackenzie Hughes, and Christiaan Bezuidenhout earning strong finishes.
Jorge Campillo ended on one-under to round out the 13 players from a field of 66 to finish the week under par.
